A ship unloads Russian liquefied natural gas in the port of Bilbao in Spain (archive image).Image: keystone
January 26, 2026, 11:15 amJanuary 26, 2026, 11:15 am
The EU states have finally decided to completely stop importing gas from Russia by the end of 2027 at the latest. Accordingly, the import of Russian gas via pipelines should be phased out gradually and completely from November 1, 2027 at the latest, including long-term contracts.
24 of the 27 EU states voted in Brussels for a corresponding regulation, thus the necessary majority was achieved. Negotiators from the member states and the European Parliament negotiated the regulation in December, which has now been finally confirmed. The members of the EU Parliament have already given the green light.
According to an analysis by the EU Commission, the complete renunciation of Russian gas does not pose a risk to security of supply. There are enough other providers on the global market, it was said from Brussels last year. Consumers therefore don’t have to worry too much about rising gas prices. The Commission had proposed the import ban that has now been decided.
New regulation despite approved gas sanctions
The background for the import ban is the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. Until the invasion began in 2022, energy supplies in Germany and many other EU states were largely secured with the help of cheap oil and gas from Russia.
The changeover takes time – especially because the aim is to avoid any major impact on consumer energy prices. As a result of the war of aggression, the EU has already issued extensive import bans on Russian energy sources such as coal and oil.
Moscow’s gas is still coming into the EU, but from 2027 there will be a complete ban on imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia. The punitive measure is part of a package of sanctions against Moscow decided in October.
In addition to an import ban, the regulation now passed is also intended to create legal certainty for pipeline gas from Russia: While the sanctions against Moscow must be extended every six months and require unanimity among the member states, the legal changes now planned are permanent.
Russia makes billions in profits from energy supplies
This is intended to ensure that the EU states become independent of energy imports from Russia in the long term and therefore less susceptible to blackmail. In addition, the complete import ban should make it more difficult for Russia, the raw materials power, to continue financing its war of aggression against Ukraine.
Even after almost four years of war, Russia continues to make billions in profits from energy deliveries to the EU. In the first half of 2025, the EU imported liquefied natural gas worth almost 4.5 billion euros from Russia, according to data from the EU statistics agency Eurostat. In 2024, natural and processed gas worth 15.6 billion euros was imported from there. For comparison: gas worth 19.1 billion euros came from the USA.
anchored in a security clause
However, the regulation contains a kind of safety clause in case the security of supply of one or more Member States is seriously threatened. Under these circumstances, the EU Commission could allow the affected EU countries to suspend gas import bans. Only if a member state declares a state of emergency are temporary deliveries permitted. (sda/awp/dpa)